MSD announces second phase of Vioxx trial

Merck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) has announced the close of the first phase of a two-plaintiff product liability trial of Vioxx and the beginning of the second and final phase.

According to the court, the company failed to provide an adequate warning regarding increased risk of heart attacks following treatment with Vioxx prior to September 2001, though it did not fail to do so before September 2002.

The Atlantic City court judged that the company violated a state consumer statute but has not assessed the damages to be paid by the firm.

Following this result, plaintiff Kathleen Hermans Messerschmidt will not be able to seek compensation on behalf of her brother in the second phase of the trial.

This phase of the trial will assess the claim that Frederick Humeston would not have been prescribed Vioxx had the labelling been altered earlier, while also assessing the extent of Vioxx in causing Mr Humeston’s heart attack in September 2001.

Hope Freiwald, outside counsel for MSD, said: “Mr Humeston unfortunately had the kind of medical issues that cause people to have heart attacks every day, regardless of whether they were taking Vioxx.”

He added that Mr Humeston had coronary disease that had taken decades to develop and had done so independently of treatment with Vioxx.

Earlier this year, MSD reported that Angela McCool had dismissed her case against MSD alleging that Voixx had caused the heart attack and death of her husband.